Mark Morris, 2012 Creativity Laureate, and Yo Yo Ma, 2002 Creativity Laureate, have teamed up to recreate the classic Middle Eastern folk tale of Layla and Majnun. Their new creation will open the season at Meany Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Washington, Seattle, running from Oct. 6 to Oct. 8.
Yo Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble first took on the story of Layla and Majnun in 2007, composing a chamber score heavily influenced by a 1908 opera by Uzeyir Hajibeyov. Ma approached Morris in '07 to begin work on a dance project using the Silk Road's composition, but according to the Seattle Times, Morris declined. A decade later, the time felt right.
Morris told the Seattle Times,"I can promise it is not going to be like something anyone has ever seen before!”